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3M, Microsoft Partner to Advance AI Data Center Infrastructure

William Attardi on July 17, 2026

3M and Microsoft announced a strategic partnership focused on AI data center infrastructure and enterprise transformation. Microsoft’s Azure Cloud and AI Infrastructure will become the first announced hyperscale cloud provider to deploy 3M’s Expanded Beam Optical (EBO) technology. 3M will also use Microsoft’s AI and digital platforms as part of its enterprise transformation across key business functions. Together, the companies will combine Microsoft’s digital and hyperscale infrastructure with 3M’s materials science and precision manufacturing to accelerate AI adoption and strengthen the physical networks required for the growth of cloud and AI workloads. 3M, Microsoft Partner to Advance AI Data Center Infrastructure

Report: Global Data Center Capex Projection Passes $1 Trillion

William Attardi on June 11, 2026

According to a recently published report by Dell’Oro Group, the worldwide data center capex outlook for 2026 was raised as hyperscale AI deployments accelerated, complemented by continued investments in general-purpose infrastructure and rising component costs. Dell’Oro Group’s Data Center IT Capex Quarterly Report details the data center infrastructure capital expenditures of each of the ten largest Cloud service providers Additional highlights from the 1Q 2026 Data Center IT Capex Quarterly Report:

  • The global data center capex outlook was raised to more than $1 trillion for 2026.
  • The Top 4 US cloud providers—Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft—increased data center capex by 78 percent.
  • Dell led server OEM revenue in the quarter, followed by Supermicro and Lenovo, while white-box vendors serving the hyperscale market accounted for the majority of server revenue. Nearly all server vendors benefited from higher memory-driven system pricing.

Report: Global Data Center Capex Projection Passes $1 Trillion

Microsoft to Build Dedicated AI Factory Campus in Texas

William Attardi on March 30, 2026

Crusoe, the AI factory company, announced the development of a new, dedicated AI factory campus in Abilene, Texas. Supporting large scale AI workloads for Microsoft, the 900 MW site includes two new buildings and an onsite power plant to support grid resilience. The new campus is located adjacent to Crusoe’s existing Abilene AI factory infrastructure, bringing the total projected capacity across the full Abilene site to 2.1 gigawatts (GW). Land clearing and site preparation for the new campus are already underway, with the first building expected to be energized in mid-2027, continuing Crusoe’s record-setting pace that energized the first two buildings of the Abilene campus in under one year. The first eight buildings of Crusoe’s existing data center campus in Abilene are expected to deliver up to 32% of the City of Abilene’s and up to 25% of Taylor County’s current FY 2025 Budgeted Property Tax Revenue. Microsoft to Build Dedicated AI Factory Campus in Texas – electrifiED

Guess How Much Big Tech Will Spend on AI This Year

William Attardi on February 7, 2026

Four of the largest tech companies in the world project that they’ll spend roughly $650 billion combined on AI infrastructure in 2026, representing a historic ball-out for corporate capital expenditures, Bloomberg reported Here’s who’s spending what:

  • Taking the cake, Amazon announced Thursday that it’s planning to drop $200 billion on AI, chips, robotics, and satellites.
  • A day earlier, Alphabet said its capital expenditures could reach $185 billion, blowing past estimates.
  • Last week, Meta pegged its capex as high as $135 billion—an 87% jump from the year prior—driven by the company’s goal of achieving AI superintelligence.
  • Microsoft is expected to spend nearly $105 billion during its fiscal year ending in June.

Big Tech to spend $650 billion on AI in 2026, per Bloomberg

Consortium Acquires Aligned Data Centers in $40B Deal by Michelle Chapman

William Attardi on October 21, 2025

A group including BlackRock, Nvidia, and Microsoft is buying Aligned Data Centers in an approximately $40 billion deal in an effort to expand next-generation cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure. The acquisition comes amid a flurry of deals in recent months involving top AI developers that are flooding the booming AI sector with resources and money, and addressing resources — such as electricity and infrastructure — needed to support such technology. Last month, OpenAI and Nvidia announced a $100 billion partnership that will add at least 10 gigawatts of data center computing power.  Consortium Acquires Aligned Data Centers in $40B Deal – electrifiED

Interesting: The Three Pillars of Independence of an Organization

The 3 Pillars of Independence most commonly refers to a framework from the UK voluntary sector (specifically promoted by organizations like Bond and the Directory of Social Change). It is a toolkit for assessing and maintaining the independence of charities, NGOs, or civil society organizations.

The Three Pillars are:

  1. Independent of Party Politics – The organization (or regulator) must remain free from bias or influence by any political party or the government of the day. Decisions should be impartial, not favoring one political side.
  2. Independent of Populism – It should not be swayed by popular public opinion, media-driven campaigns, or transient public pressure, especially on controversial or unpopular causes.
  3. Independent of the Press – Freedom from media influence or pressure, ensuring decisions are based on evidence and law rather than headlines or public narratives.

This toolkit was created to monitor potential political encroachment on charitable regulation and to ensure charities can operate without undue external interference.

 

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